John: There was no 'rest of the story' as far a sports cars go. Al Auger
went on to relate other occasions when he and Dan got together. One was an
eating contest at an all-you-can-eat buffet between Dan and a crew member.
The crew member won. They were asked not to return by the restaurant
manager. Dan told of his plans to build a racing machine that would fit his
size. The vehicle was a cigarette boat, an ocean-going race boat. To the
best of Al's knowledge, this never happened. Their last meeting was at the
"Bonanza" location of its Ponderosa Ranch near Lake Tahoe. The event was a
Polaris ski mobile promotion with all the "Bonanza" stars. The Polaris
people had laid out an autocross course in the snow. The Polaris people
weren't all that happy that Dan and Al disappeared for the rest of the day
tearing up their course with one machine after another. Al's final comments
were that Dan confided in him that he was planning to quit Hollywood and go
back to teaching, his real love. Dan died at the age of 42 after major
surgery.
(The Other) Len
Vacaville, CA
1967 3000 MKIII HBJ8L39031
(The Other) Len
Vacaville, CA
1967 3000 MKIII HBJ8L39031
> [Original Message]
> From: John Soderling <jsoderling@astound.net>
> To: Len and/or Marge <thehartnetts@earthlink.net>; Healeys Mail List
<healeys@autox.team.net>
> Date: 4/29/2005 6:59:46 PM
> Subject: Re: "Dan Blocker Was a "Car Guy"..."
>
> Len,
> "And now for the rest of the story ......?
>
> Vrooom vrooom,
> John
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Len and/or Marge" <thehartnetts@earthlink.net>
> To: "Healeys Mail List" <healeys@autox.team.net>
> Sent: Friday, April 29, 2005 11:31 AM
> Subject: "Dan Blocker Was a "Car Guy"..."
>
>
> > The following is from the Open Exhaust column by Al Auger in the
> > (Vacaville) Reporter newpaper, 4/29/2005:
> >
> > " 'Bonanza' star provided wild racing memories. Dan Blocker was a
"car
> > guy" with a problem. He loved sports cars and road racing. But, his
> > 6-foot-4-inch bulk could hardly fit in the cockpit of the cars he
loved.
> > He was also a friend with a heart as big as his body. I first met Dan
at
> > Laguna Seca where, although he couldn't drive a race car, he kept close
to
> > the sport as a car owner.
> >
> > The Car, a highly modified Austin-Healey he called the "Vinegarroon",
was
> > a monster to drive, powered by a supped up V-8..."
> >
> > (The Other) Len
> > Vacaville, CA
> > 1967 3000 MKIII HBJ8L39031
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